MEDIA RELEASE PR40379
Sundaram Rajagopal Joins Starwood Capital Group as Managing Director, India and Southeast
Asia
GREENWICH, Conn., July 12 /PRNewswire-AsiaNet/ --
Veteran Real Estate Executive to Oversee All of Starwood's
Acquisition and Asset Management Activities in the Region
Starwood Capital Group, a leading global private equity firm focused on
real estate and energy infrastructure, announced today that Sundaram V.
Rajagopal is rejoining the firm as Managing Director, India and Southeast
Asia, Starwood Capital India Advisors Private Limited. In this role, Mr.
Rajagopal will lead all acquisition and asset management activities for
Starwood Capital in India and Southeast Asia and will manage the team based
in Mumbai, India. Mr. Rajagopal brings more than 17 years of real estate
experience to the position, including nearly 10 years executing real estate
investments in India. He previously worked at Starwood Capital Group from
2002 to 2005.
Since opening its office in Mumbai in 2006, Starwood Capital has actively
pursued a number of investment opportunities in major developments in various
markets, along with strategic investments in operating platforms across
India, including investing in a landmark office project in Mumbai's Bandra
Kurla district currently under construction.
Mr. Rajagopal brings a wealth of experience to his position, particularly
in India. He most recently served as the Managing Director and Country Head
for Lehman Brothers' Real Estate Partners' activities in India, where he
developed and executed Lehman's entry into real estate private equity in
India and invested approximately $300 million of equity across ventures and
asset classes. Prior to joining Lehman Brothers in 2006, Mr. Rajagopal served
as the Managing Partner for Third Point India, LLC, a partnership dedicated
to real estate, and other special situation investments in India. He joined
Third Point India from Starwood Capital Group, where he served as a Vice
President focused on transaction execution for a variety of asset classes in
the United States and Europe over a period of three years.
"We are thrilled to welcome back Raj, a home grown talent, who has
broadened and deepened his knowledge and experience in real estate since he
left our Greenwich office to run Lehman's operations in India," said Barry
Sternlicht, Chairman and CEO of Starwood Capital Group. "Raj is well-versed
in our core risk-reward discipline, our focus on creating value, aligning
interests and on building meaningful and important relationships within our
firm, with our investors and with our partners."
Mr. Rajagopal holds a B.S. in Civil Engineering from the University of
Texas at Austin, an M.S. in Structural Engineering from the University of
California at Berkeley and an M.B.A. with distinction from Harvard Business
School.
Starwood Capital Group also announced today that Balaji Rao, Managing
Director of Starwood Capital India Advisors Private Limited, is leaving the
Company to pursue other interests. Mr. Rao has agreed to continue working
with Starwood Capital during the interim period to transition his
responsibilities to Mr. Rajagopal.
"Balaji has been an integral part of our growing operations in India and
we are very grateful for his many contributions during his time with us," Mr.
Sternlicht said. "We wish to thank Balaji for his important work in building
Starwood's presence in India and wish him well in all his future endeavors.
We will continue to build upon the groundwork he has helped establish by
seeking new opportunities under Raj's leadership and growing our business
interests within the country."
About Starwood Capital Group Global, LLC
Starwood Capital is a private, U.S.-based investment firm with a core
focus on global real estate. Since the group's inception in 1991, the firm,
through its various funds, has invested more than $6 billion of equity
capital, representing $21 billion in assets. Starwood currently has
approximately $14 billion of assets under management. Starwood maintains
offices in Greenwich, Atlanta, San Francisco, Washington, D.C., London,
Mumbai and Tokyo. Starwood has invested in nearly every class of real estate
on a global basis, including office, retail, residential, senior housing,
golf, hotels, resorts and industrial assets. Starwood and its affiliates have
successfully executed an investment strategy that includes building
enterprises around core real estate portfolios in both the private and public
markets.
SOURCE: Starwood Capital Group Global, LLC
CONTACT: Tom Johnson, Abernathy MacGregor Group, +1-212-371-5999
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